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Elves
Elven Culture Elven culture is deeply influenced by the long life spans of the elven people. With the horizon of death so very far off in the future, elves have a very different perspective on time, and hence on life itself. The elven lifestyle is one of patience, leisure, and appreciation, rather than one of strife and desperate ambition. Because of this the culture of elves can appear very alien to the non-elven, particularly to humans who have the shortest life span of the sentient beings. Elves once ruled Valusia and much of Tarth, but the first spider war brought an end to their relatively peaceful and carefree reign. It was this war and the ensuing race wars that have molded much of elven culture since. The elves, being magical creatures by nature are not disturbed by paradox, and therefore their culture maintains deep inconsistencies which other races might not abide so easily. One of the greatest paradoxes is that an elf’s life is long, but they all train for warfare, which often puts an elf’s long life at risk of meeting an abrupt and early end. It is their long perspective on life that encourages them to appreciate the present moment for what it is - a precious gift that may be taken back at any moment. This paradox will lead elves to odd behaviors, such as setting into motion a project that may take a century to complete, only to put it on hold to go on a decade long adventure. What allows the elven culture to succeed despite their paradoxical nature is that they have a rapid breeding period, and youth is relatively short for an elf. Thus the elven population is very large, and at any one time a large number of people are working on and maintaining their culture, their homelands, and the general welfare of all elven kind. Elves are the most magical race on Tarth, and as such they are closely tied to the spirit world and the other planes of existence. While elves are aware of and form close ties with the spirit world, they ultimately use a magic that is arcane rather than spiritual, channeling energy from the non-material planes to accomplish their wills. However, shamans and sorcerers are not unheard of in elven culture, particularly to the west where the elves intermingle with the Khajiit. Elven family structure is communal. All children are raised by all adults, and generally speaking men and women have different lifestyles, live apart in communal dwellings, and interact intimately solely for mating purposes and fun. Marriage is unheard of in elven culture, as elves believe males and females were not meant to live together, but to come together for a season and move on. This view is tied to the elven philosophy of impermanence which is discussed below. Elven culture does not favor one sex over the other, though their leader is always a female. This is more for the recognition that a mother is more nurturing than a father, and women have a better ability to empathize and use their intuition to care for their charges, whereas men would use logic and order, which often backfires on those who rely on it too much. This equality of the sexes means that women are believed just as capable as men. Thus every member of the elven race must spend a few decades in the military. This usually occurs during the elf’s youth, before they go off on their pilgrimage to explore the surrounding world. Pilgrimage The purpose of the elven pilgrimage is to keep elven society from stagnating. With life spans upwards of a thousand years, it would be easy for the ancient elves to hold elven culture in a conservative lurch, refusing to change with the times. Recognizing this, the ancients devised the pilgrimage which would guarantee that the elven people always had exposure to and influence from the greater world. The youth who return from their pilgrimages bring back new technology and ideas, facts about the other peoples of the land, and an excitement for spreading change that refreshes the culture continuously. Nature and Imana Due to their close ties to nature and their long life spans, elves are aware of the fact that nothing lasts forever; seasons change, people die, time erodes all things. For this reason, elves do not make bonds with one another for longer than is convenient. This includes any manner of commitment. The elven ties to nature have fostered a belief in imana, the unified consciousness of nature. This belief inspired the elves to take on the role of protectors of nature, and is the single universal responsibility of all elves. Elves are intimately tied to imana, so much so that they can feel the suffering of the planet when extreme destruction occurs. The coming of the spiders and their subsequent pollution of the planet has wounded the spirit of the elven people, driving some to levels of savagery the race has not known since its infancy. Imana also inspires a great appreciation for natural beauty. An elf feels a profound spiritual longing for beauty, and thus much of an elf’s life is devoted to making and appreciating beauty. This can even be seen in the elven style of fighting, which is as graceful as a dance, and just as deadly. Beauty and nature are the cornerstones of elven culture, and thus their cities in the trees are gorgeous places, blended perfectly with their surroundings. Elves also decorate themselves, either with tattoos or paints and piercings. Effect of the Race Wars The race wars put a darker edge to elven culture. It was after the first race war that it became mandatory for all elves to spend decades in the military. It was also at this time that elves began to explore the darker planes of existence and tap into destructive magical power. For an elf, war and violence are doubly terrible, for they experience the spiritual resonance of pain and suffering as they are inflicting it upon others, and having it inflicted upon themselves. It is not uncommon for elves to go mad during war time. Indeed, it is almost a blessing, for in the throes of madness an elf is capable of tolerating levels of pain no other living creature could abide. This characteristic of elven warriors makes them far fiercer than their frail forms suggest. Unfortunately, the darkness of the race wars has left a permanent stain on elven culture, with some nations becoming so obsessed with war that they have made pacts with dark spirits, and have even started performing the art of necromancy. But these nations are small and hidden in the dark places of the planet. Though this makes them less influential in general, it makes them all the more dangerous. Redacted Sections These sections are inconsistent and have been removed from the main article. The Queen and the Council of Elders Even the Elven Queen does not dedicate her entire life to the responsibilities of the throne, but is aware that at some time a younger elf will rise to take her place. This is usually accomplished by a unanimous vote from the Circle of Elders. The Circle is comprised of eleven ancient elves that are hand-picked by the queen to advise her. These elders serve as long as they choose, though most serve until their queen dismisses them or until another queen comes into power.